Balance & Stamina & Time

I had a great chat with my neighbouring teacher today, who also teaches the third grade. The culmination of our conversation was all about the necessity and importance of balance and stamina and taking the time to build a skill.

You see, she thought I wouldn't agree with her when she said that it's okay to only give one thing to do, rather than options, at the start of an exploration. (We were actually discussing open-ended art, but it led into a math chat. The big idea was that if there is no skill yet built, then we should give the kids some exposure before saying "go wild and free!") I think I'm sometimes misinterpreted because I don't have desks in my classroom, but she was happy to hear me go on about it elaborately. I explained that while I'm a little out there with my ideas, they are grounded in pedagogy and research driven data.

We eventually ended up agreeing that with the proper skills, built through a balanced and thoughtful facilitation, will eventually allow the students to have more freedom over their work. Building their stamina and allowing time to do all of these things are how we can have them approach open-ended activities. This is where we are right now, as we balance inquiry and the culture of the pros and cons of our educational system.

This post is inspired by that short conversation, which was the fruits of some ideas that have been bubbling this month as I settle into a group of students far from the independent thinkers I worked with last year.

Stamina is something that is undervalued and overlooked. I realize this now. I didn't always. In fact, I hadn't thought explicitly about it until I'd read the Daily Five. When I read it, it clicked. Stamina is so important to build, in anything, regardless of being a part of the Daily Five language program or something else. The kids need to build their stamina for math problems, through repeated activities which increase in time over a period of time. They need it for independent reading. They need it for writing. They need it for art. They need it for transitions. So we started explicitly building our stamina with all of those things. Things are calming down as the kids start to see how pleasurable working can be.

Balance is the other piece to this puzzle of not wanting to jump out the window all year. Balancing through careful releasing of responsibility is such a necessity that it should be somewhere in the curriculum. Then again, I also think that successfully transitioning should also be a curriculum expectation, and I have no desks, so maybe I'm a little weird. So what?! When I'm talking about balance, I'm referring to everything from how much they are asked to do independently and how often that happens in comparison to large and small group opportunities; I'm talking about balancing my modelling with their own exploration, determining when it is a good idea to model first or to model after (thereby flipping the lesson around, which in my opinion and experience is often the best way to introduce something new!); I'm talking about balancing activities with quiet reflections and transitions. I'm even talking about balancing our "calm" through meditative opportunities, to turn down the volume inside their busy brains, and to give them an opportunity to have peace for a minute or two.

When the right combination of balance and stamina is combined, the results are wondrous.

I recognized, almost immediately, that my students had many misconceptions about numbers. I was trying at first to give them too many activities, to bounce around too much from adding to breaking down and building numbers and so on and so forth. I wanted them to be excited about math, but in my own excitement, I lost theirs. Lost. That's what they were. I could see it in their eyes.

So I had them work at numbers up to ten for about a week. We used ten frames and other manipulatives until getting up to ten was comfortable.

Then for two solid weeks we ONLY played with the base ten blocks. This was more modelled at first, and then I shared the conversation with the kids, and then they would work for a couple of minutes with a partner to build any number that they wanted. At some point, one kid noticed that he really didn't need more than nine single blocks. Once he reached ten, he could use a ten-rod. About a week later, someone connected that to the tens and hundreds. Bingo!

 


Time was so important. I couldn't rush it. These guys needed to become independent workers with these blocks, representing the numbers over and over and over. But it didn't get boring, because they were picking the numbers themselves. They owned the numbers. And, when their partners got it wrong, it was freakin' exciting! They got to teach their partners how the number should have been built, according to our agreed-upon system of using the most efficient blocks only.

So I would begin each lesson by inviting them to sit around the perimeter of the carpet (thereby sneaking in a math vocabulary word and making a connection available for them when it is time to look at perimeters in Geometry). I would spread out some blocks and have them count with me (because we need to count everyday). They would need to pay close attention because I might switch from ones to tens at any moment. Of course, I only did this in increments that they would be instantly successful with, in order to build their efficacy.

I would build a number and ask them what it was. They'd talk about it and call it out and we'd do it again. And again. Then, I'd ask someone to give me a number to build. Back and forth with me in the forefront (although I was sitting on the floor with them), they were able to successfully participate in the activity and practice for their independent time, with a partner. They'd break off and go to work. I'd stop them after 3-5 minutes and we'd come back together, cleaning it all up. Then, I would model some more and ask about their experience. I'd send them back to work. Having them tidy set their minds at ease and they were able to focus on me. It didn't matter that they'd be heading back out soon.

This week, I introduced a new hurdle to the mix. You see, I really, really, REALLY want them to understand numbers and work with them with ease. So the base tens were a great start after the ten frames from week 1, but they needed to work more with it, but with a challenge now. This week, they needed to draw out their blocks into the proper columns for their number. AND, they needed to write the number in words, giving us a language connection and words for our word wall. AND ... they had to write down the equation for the number. For example, if the number was 27, they would write:

Twenty seven

20 + 7

If it was 124, they'd write:

One hundred twenty four

100 + 20 + 4

The chart gave them a framework to organize their thinking, an opportunity to practice addition, writing, representing numbers in pictures, and a chance to see how complex the numbers are.

At first, this was a struggle. Now, I have kids flying through their own pages, even working with thousands. I'm not saying that they are geniuses or experts. I'm saying that they are comfortable and grasp the concept.

Next week, we will start comparing and ordering these numbers. Once this is established, I would like to work in some measurement and continue on down the path. It is all about building that stamina through balanced opportunities, which will drive their efficacy upward, to infinity & beyond! Then they'll be able to do anything.

Here is a link to the organizer we have been using, in PDF:

Base Ten Organizer (Hundreds/Tens/Ones)

You can make your own in less than two minutes, to suit your own needs!